Ripple Effect

Chapter Three: ...nice and normal.

Elizabeth

2:04 PM

A rucked blanket of slate grey cloud had shrouded the sky by the time Elizabeth and Will stepped out of the restaurant foyer and onto the verge of the sidewalk. A river of pedestrians, all in suits or tailored dresses, coursed by. Matt opened the rear door of the black SUV with a clunk, whilst the other DS agents stretched out their arms and formed the walls of the corridor that would convey Elizabeth through the throng and to the safety of the backseat. The way the agents' gazes scoured each building front, each car that crawled past, each face whether gawping or indifferent, turned everything into a threat, everyone into a suspect. Part of her missed those simpler days when she was more likely to get hit by the proverbial bus than by a sniper's bullet.

A shiver shuddered its way out of her shoulders and tightened the back of her neck. After the fug of the restaurant, the open air carried a sting.

"Here." Will unfolded his jacket from where he had draped it over his arm, and he held it up for her. When she hesitated, he gave it a shimmy. "That hospital's like working in a boiler room from a Kafka novel, and I'm already sweating. Just take it."

"Thanks." She slipped her arms into the sleeves, and then stuffed her hands into the pockets and hugged the woollen blazer around her. The sandalwood from his cologne and the lingering trace of body heat had woven into the wool. Both warmed her. She turned back to face him, and tilted her head towards the car. "Can we at least give you a ride?"

The first drops of rain spattered the concrete slabs. The polka dots bled into streaks, and all around them, umbrellas flourished into a low-lying canopy of pewter and peach and teal.

He looked around at the thickening curtain of rain, and then shrugged. "Sure. Why not?" He placed his hand against the middle of her back and ushered her into the car.

The door thudded shut and muffled the world outside. A moment later, the SUV pulled away into the traffic with a low roar. The raindrops that fogged the windows coalesced into rivulets that meandered from one side of the bulletproof glass to the other, and the rhythmic thunk and screech of windscreen wipers played in the background.

Will ran one hand through his hair, tousling the damp strands, and then rested his arm against the door panel and drummed his fingers against the plastic as he stared out of the window. He paused mid-refrain and shot Elizabeth a look. "Thanks for lunch, by the way."

Elizabeth toyed with the cuff of his jacket. "Not exactly nice and normal."

"No." He gave a mouth shrug that broke into a smile. "But that's not us."

She snorted and shook her head to herself. True. But her expression soon sobered. "I really think you should go to London, even just for the weekend."

He slackened the knot of his tie and undid the top button of his shirt. "Look, Sophie said it was up to me if I wanted to go or not."

"You do realise that meant she wanted you to go."

"Of course, but I'd rather not see her parents, so if she's going to give me the choice—passive-aggressively or otherwise—I'm going to choose not to go. Plus, I really do have work." He dabbed at his brow with the cuff of his shirt sleeve. "It's really hot in here. Are you hot?"

"It's like sixty degrees, so no. And what's wrong with her parents?"

"You know what in-laws are like. They don't get people like you and me."

"You say that as if we're even remotely similar."

"Two sides of the same coin." He leant forward and fiddled with the vent of the air-con situated between the two seats in front. "Look, you never got on with Henry's family."